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UNITED STATES OF AMi^IilCA. 



LOT'S WIFE, 



A WARNING AGAINST BAD EXAMPLES. 



BY T^E 

REV. W. J. ilcCORD, 

TRIBES HILL, N. Y. 




PHILADELPHIA: 

PRESBYTERIAN BOARD OF PUBLICATION. 
NO. 821 CHESTNUT STllEET. 



Vfv^ 



Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1859, by 

JAMES DUNLAP, Treas., 

In the Clerk's OflBice of the District Court for the Eastern District 

of Pennsylvania. 



STEREOTYPED BY 

JESPER HARDING & SON, 

INQUIRER BUILDING, SOUTH THIRD STREET, PHILADELPHIA. 



CONTENTS, 



<•» 



CHAPTER I. 

PAGE 

The history, ...... 5 

CHAPTER n; 

Examples, , . 18 

CHAPTER III. 
Illustrations, . ..... 38 

CHAPTER lY. 
Application, 52 

CHAPTER Y. 
Conclusion, ...... 68 



LOT'S WIFE. 



CHAPTER I. 
THE HISTORY. 
Remember Lot's Wife. — Luke xvii. 32. . 

Lot was the son of Haran, and 
nephew of Abraham, and perhaps the 
brother of Sarah. He dwelt for a 
time in Sodom, and was the only right- 
eous person found there when God de- 
termined to destroy that city. He, with 
his two daughters, escaped from that ter- 
rible overthrow by the assistance of 
two angels. Gen. xi. 27 — 32 j xviii. 

17_33 ; and xix. 1—30. 

1* (5) 



b LOT S WIFE. 

As to* Lot's wife, we are not in- 
formed who she was. But we know 
her character. Perhaps she was a 
native of Sodom^, as nothing is said of 
Lot's having a wife while with Abra- 
ham; and the destruction of Sodom 
was some twenty years after Lot's sep- 
aration from Abraham. But as some 
of Lot's children were grown up and 
married before Sodom was destroyed, 
he must have been married himself 
before removing to Sodom. Be this 
as it may, his wife was no doubt a 
wicked woman ; and in this respect 
like the inhabitants of Sodom. Gen. 
xix. 14—26. 

Sodom stood where the Dead Sea 
now is. It was a wicked city; and 
it was destroyed for its wickedness. 
You may read its history in Gen. xiii. 
10—13; xiv. 8—16; xviii. 16—33; 



THE HISTORY. 7 

XIX. 1—38; 2 Pet. ii. 4—10; and 
Jude 7, 8. Now when God was about 
to destroy Sodom, he made known his 
purposes to Abraham. Abraham inter- 
ceded for the preservation of the city, 
and obtained the promise that if ten 
righteous men were found in it, it should 
not be destroyed. But so general was 
the corruption, that Lot alone remained 
unspotted amid the profane crew. The 
cry of Sodom and Gomorrah was great, 
and their sin was very grievous. Hence 
the Lord sent his angels to destroy 
Sodom and the cities of the plain. 
The time had come. They hastened 
Lot, saying, ^^ Arise, take thy wife, 
and thy two daughters which are here ; 
lest thou be consumed in the in- 
iquity of the city." "And while he 
lingered " — for he seemed unwilling to 
leave the place and all his possessions 



8 lot's wife. 

behind him — while he lingered, " the 
men/' that is, the angels, ^^laid hold 
upon his hand, and upon the hand of 
his wife, and upon the hand of his 
two daughters" — -just as Christ Jesus 
is ready to lay hold upon the hand of 
sinners and pluck them from destruc- 
tion, — ^' the Lord being merciful unto 
him, and they brought him forth, and 
set him without the city. And when 
they had brought him forth abroad, he" 
— the angel-Jehovah — " said. Escape 
for thy life ; look not behind thee, neith- 
er stay thou in all the plain ; escape 
to the mountain, lest thou be con- 
sumed. But his wife looked back 
from behind him, and she became a 
pillar of salt." Her history is brief. 
She looked back ; she disobeyed the 
command, for the direction was, ^^Look 
not behind thee;" she ^^ became a pil- 



THE HISTORY. 9 

lar of salt ;" She immediately received 
the punishment due to her crime, and 
became a monument of the justice of 
God and a warning to all transgress- 
ors — a beacon to succeeding genera- 
tions. '' Remember Lot's wife !" Gen. 
xviii. 17—33; and xix. 1—29. 

The occasion on which these words 
were uttered, and the manner in which 
they are introduced, are calculated to 
impress them deeply upon the mind. 
Our Lord is speaking of the destruc- 
tion of Jerusalem and the calamities 
which should accompany it. These 
things, he declares, should come sud- 
denly and unexpectedly, as destruction 
came upon the old world and upon 
Sodom. As it was in the days of 
Noah, so shall it be also in the days of 
the Son of man. " They did eat, they 
drank, they married wives, they were 



10 lot's wife. 

given in marriage, until the day that 
Noah entered into the ark, and the 
flood came and destroyed them all. 
Likewise also, as it was in the days 
of Lot ; they did eat, they drank, they 
bought, they sold, they planted, they 
builded ; but the same day that Lot 
went out of Sodom, it rained fire and 
brimstone from heaven, and destroyed 
them all. Even thus shall it be in 
the day when the Son of man is reveal- 
ed " — to destroy Jerusalem. ^^Then 
let them which be in Judea flee into 
the mountains. In that day, he that 
shall be upon the house-top, and his 
stuff in the house, let him not come 
down to take it away ; and he that is 
in the field, let him likewise not return 
back " — either with the hope of safety 
in the city, or to take his clothes or 
any thing away. ^^ Remember Lot's 



THE HISTORY. 11 

wife." Ye know how it was with her. 
She looked back and became a pillar 
of salt. Shun her example. " Es- 
cape for your lives." Gen. xix. 26 ; 
Matt. xxiv. Luke xvii. 

We should remember her disobe- 
dience and the punishment inflicted 
for it. We should be careful not to 
imitate her unwillingness to leave 
Sodom and forsake it entirely, even in 
thought and desire, by an unwilling- 
ness to forsake our sins and the pleas- 
ures and folhes of the world. Nor 
should we imitate her looking back, by 
returning to a course of sinfulness 
after we have commenced a life of 
piety and devotion. " No man having 
put his hand to the plough, and look- 
ing back, is fit for the kingdom of 
God." Luke ix. 62. 

^' Remember Lot's wife !" So the 



12 lot's wife. 

Redeemer said, and his word should 
be heeded. " Lot's \Yife left Sodom, 
yet she lost her life by looking back 
to those possessions and connections 
which she was called to forsake. ' Thus 
she was made a perpetual warning to 
men in every age, not to allow even a 
wish for, or hankering desire after, 
those sinful interests and indulgences, 
which religion requires them to re- 
nounce, lest the}' should be drawn aside 
to destruction. The young disciple 
should not hanker after those things 
which he has left behind, nor draw 
back unto perdition." Heb. x. 36 — 
39. 

It is wise to remember her. " This 
unhappy woman, contrary to God's ex- 
press command, in unbelief, and in 
love to Sodom and its riches and pleas- 
ures, and its sins too, regretting what 



THE HISTORY. 13 

was left behind, and probably purpos- 
ing to return, looked back, and as 
some think, actually attempted to re- 
turn ; and our Lord's words in the 
verse immediately preceding, ^Let him 
not return back ;' and his adding di- 
rectly after those words, ' Remember 
Lot's wife,' favour this supposition. 
She was, therefore, instantaneously 
struck dead and petrified, with her 
face toward Sodom, showing that her 
heart was there, and thus she remained 
to after ages, a visible monument of 
the divine displeasure, being punished 
as a warning to others through all suc- 
ceeding time." 

" Remember Lot's wife !" Yes, re- 
member her. For disobeying the com- 
mand, '' Look not behind thee," she 
was turned into a pillar of salt. This 

pillar of salt continued for many ages. 
2 



14 lot's wife. 

Josephus, the Jewish historian, who 
wrote after the destruction of Jerusa- 
lem, has these words : "Lot's wife, con- 
tinually turning back to view the city, 
as she went from it, and being too 
nicely inquisitive what would become 
of it, although God had forbidden her 
so to do, was changed into a pillar of 
salt; for I have seen it, and it remains 
at this day." That it was standing 
then, is also attested by Clement of 
Rome, contemporary with Josephus ; 
and that it was standing in the next 
century also, is attested by Iren^eus. 
Some modern travellers say that it is 
even now standing. But this of course 
is extremely doubtful. Something so 
called may exist near that locality ; 
but not at all likely the body of Lot's 
wife. The scripture admonition is to 
us a more sure word of prophecy ; and 



THE HISTORY. 15 

to that we should take heed. 2 Pet. 
i. 19. 

Different views are taken of her 
case. ^^ Some are of opinion, that be- 
ing surprised and suffocated with fire 
and smoke, she continued in the same 
place, as immovable as a rock of salt ; 
others, that a column or monument of 
salt stone was erected on her grave ; 
others, that she was stifled in the flame, 
and became a monument of salt to pos- 
terity : that is, a permanent and dur- 
able monument of her imprudence. 
The common opinion is, that she was 
suddenly petrified and changed into a 
statue of rock salt, which is as hard as 
the hardest rocks. " And this common 
opinion may be the true one. Still, as 
the term expresses fixedness, '' and as 
the Hebrews reckoned among salts 
both nitre and bitumen, so the term 



16 lot's wife. 

salt here used, may denote the bitu- 
minous mass which overwhelmed thig 
woman, fixed her to the place where 
it fell upon her, raised a mound over 
her, of a height proportionable to her 
figure, and was long afterwards pointed 
out by the inhabitants as a memento 
of her fate, and a warning against loit- 
ering, when divinely exhorted." Luke 
xvii. 32. 

Had we the body of Lot's wife here, 
it might be an object of curious inspec- 
tion. The Anatomist would love to 
dissect it, and examine its parts ; the 
Chemist to analyze it, and search into 
the nature of those changes which it 
may have undergone ; the Mineralo- 
gist to ascertain its properties, whether 
salt, or bitumen as some think ; and 
the Philosopher the causes of its trans- 
formation, and the means of its pre- 



THE HISTORY. 17 

servation. But there is something to 
be learned from the simple history of 
this disobedient woman, far more im- 
portant than the gratification of idle 
curiosity. To this let us attend, and 
not to speculations. We learn from it 
that bad examples are to be shunned. 
The end of the wicked teaches us to 
shun their example. To the illustra- 
tion and enforcement of this lesson, 
these pages are devoted. Let them 
be carefully and prayerfully read. 

" Remember Lot's wife !" Lot's wife 
is a warning against bad examples. 
Look at her end, and shun her example. 
Look at the end of the wicked, and 
shun their example. " Enter not in- 
to the path of the wicked, and go not 
in the way of evil men. The way of 
the wicked is as darkness. Let thine 

eyes look right on." Prov. iv. 14 — 27. 
2» 



18 lot's wife. 



CHAPTEK 11. 

EXAMPLES. 

If sinners entice thee, consent thou not. — Prov. i. 
10. Eemember Lot's wife. — Luke xvii. 32. 

The end of the wicked teaches us to 
shun their example. The end of the 
wicked may be considered in two points 
of view : — one, their death, the ter- 
mination of their mortal existence ; 
the other, their future punishment, 
their everlasting wretchedness. Lot's 
wife was smitten and turned into a 
pillar of salt, in the very act of diso- 
beying God, and this was her end as 
it respects her mortal existence. But 
as she died in the act of transgression, 
she is no doubt at this very moment 



EXAMPLES. 19 

with the inhabitants of Sodom to whom 
she wished to return, suffering the ven- 
geance of eternal fire ; and this is her 
end as it respects her everlasting 
state. The end of the wicked, in 
either or both these respects, as the 
one involves the other, is calculated to 
influence us to be careful how we walk 
in their steps. Their end teaches us 
to shun their example. 

" Remember Lot's wife " — a warn- 
ing against bad examples. Let us 
look at the end of some wicked men, 
as an inducement to shun their ex- 
ample. The Bible contains accounts 
of some wicked persons, both men 
and women, and children too ; and 
what is said of them is recorded for a 
warning to us. With many of the 
Israelites, " God was not well pleased ; 
for they were overthrown in the wild- 



20 lot's wife. 

erness. Now, these things were our 
examples, to the intent that we should 
not lust after evil things, as they also 
lusted. Neither be ye idolaters, as 
were some of them ; as it is written, 
the people sat down to eat and drink, 
and rose up to play. Neither let us 
commit fornication, as some of them 
committed, and fell in one day three 
and twenty thousand. Neither let us 
tempt Christ, as some of them also 
tempted, and were destroyed of ser- 
pents. Neither murmur ye, as some 
of them also murmured, and were de- 
stroyed of the destroyer. Now all 
these things happened unto them for 
ensamples ; and they are written for 
our admonition." 1 Cor. x. 5 — 11, 
So all things recorded in the Bible 
^^are profitable for doctrine, for re- 
proof, for correction, for instruction in 



EXAMPLES. 21 

righteousness." 2Tim.iii. 15 — 17. Let 
us, therefore, turn over the Bible, and 
see the end of those who have done 
wickedly, as there recorded. This will 
prove a salutary warning against bad 
examples. 

We begin with Adam and Eve. God 
made them holy, in his own image, 
and they were happy. But they fell. 
They did wickedly in believing the 
devil and disbelieving God; and in 
obeying the devil and disobeying 
God. Their unbelief and disobedience 
brought them under the curse of God, 
made them miserable, and drove and 
ghut them out of Eden, while it also 
brought ruin upon their posterity. 
Rom. V. 12 — 18. So, sinner, your 
unbelief and sin have brought you un- 
der the wrath and curse of God, and 
will shut you out of heaven, and shut 



22 . lot's wife. 

you up in hell, if you do not repent 
and turn unto the Lord. By the fall 
you are ruined ;. but there is salvation 
in Jesus Christ. He has died ; and 
you must embrace him by faith if you 
would be saved. 

Such was the effect of disobedience 
on our first parents. It brought on 
them, and on their posterity, the sen- 
tence of death. What was their end 
we are not informed ; but we have 
reason to conclude that they believed 
in the promised Seed, Jesus Christ, re- 
pented of their sins, and were forgiven 
and saved. So, reader, if you repent 
and believe — if you come to Jesus 
Christ — you too shall be forgiven and 
saved. 

We next read of Cain, the first mur- 
derer — the murderer of his own broth- 
er. And the curse of God fell upon 



EXAMPLES. 23 

him. ^' And the Lord said unto Cain, 
Now art thou cursed from the earth, 
which hath opened her mouth to re- 
ceive thy brother's blood from thy 
hand. When thou tillest the ground, 
it shall not henceforth yield unto thee 
her strength; a fugitive and a vaga- 
bond shalt thou be in the earth. And 
Cain went out from the presence of 
the Lord" — bearing the mark of Je- 
hovah's anger — a living monument of 
wrath — and doubtless died in his sins 
and perished for ever. Shun his ex- 
ample ! 

Passing individual instances, the 
next example is that of the old world. 
When men began to multiply on the 
earth, " God saw that the wickedness 
of man was great, and that every im- 
agination of the thoughts of his heart 
was only evil continually. And the 



24 lot's wife. 

Lord said, I will destroy man whom I 
have created. But Noah found grace 
in the eyes of the Lord." He, b}' the 
direction of God, prepared an ark, and 
the same day that he and his family 
entered into it, the flood came, and 
overwhelmed the whole remainder of 
the human family. Such was the end 
of that world of sinners — a deluge 
swept them from the face of the earth. 
But that deluge is nothing to the fiery 
deluge of wrath which is even now 
poured upon them. Nor is it any 
thing to that deluge of hot displeasure 
and fiery indignation, which shall over- 
take the wicked, who are now follow- 
ing the example of the old world, by 
linng in their sins and refusing to en- 
ter the Ark of safet}^ which the God 
of love and mercy hath provided for 
the perishing, even Christ Jesus ! 



EXAMPLES. 



25 



sinner, flee from coming wrath ! Flee 
to the Saviour !" 

We come now to Sodom and Go- 
morrah, Admah and Zeboim, the cities 
of the plain, which for their sins were 
consumed by fire and brimstone from 
heaven. These cities, ^^ giving them- 
selves over to fornication, and going 
after strange flesh, are set forth for an 
example, suffering the vengeance of 
eternal fire." Jude 7. 

We read that Er, Judah's first born, 
was wicked in the sight of the Lord ; 
and the Lord slew him. And imme- 
diately after, it is said of Onan, his 
brother, that the thing which he did 
displeased the Lord, or was evil in the 
eyes of the Lord ; wherefore he slew 
him also. Let the wicked beware lest 
the Lord slay them also. For the 

3 



26 lot's wife. 

Lord is angry with the wicked every 
day. 

Look at Pharaoh and the Egyptians. 
They were unwilling to comply with 
the requirements of Grod and let Israel 
go. Plague after plague was sent up- 
on them ; the first born in every fa- 
mily was slain ; and finally Pharaoh 
himself and all his host were over- 
whelmed in the Red Sea and drowned. 
Look at their end, and shun their ex- 
ample ; for thus will God overwhelm 
in a sea of fire never to be quenched, 
all who will not yield to his require- 
ments, embrace his Son by faith, give 
him their hearts, and live to his glory. 
Hear God's voice, believe, and obey. 

Come we now to the house of Israel. 
We find them delivered from bondage, 
and led toward the land of promise 
by the hand of Moses, under the im- 



EXAMPLES. 27 

mediate direction and care of God. 
But soon we hear them murmuring for 
water, and then for meat, wishing they 
had died by the flesh-pots of Egypt, 
where they ate bread to the full ; and 
again murmuring for water, and soon, 
in the very sight of Sinai, where God 
had displayed his glory and given his 
laws, causing Aaron to make them 
idols, and bowing down to them and 
worshipping them ; and there three 
thousand were slain. Passing over 
other events in their history, let us 
notice one more occurrence, a murmur- 
ing in which the whole nation joined. 
'' And all the congregation lifted up 
their voices and cried ; and the people 
wept that night. And all the children 
of Israel murmured against Moses and 
against Aaron ; and the whole congre- 
gation said unto them, Would God 



n 



LOTS WIFE. 



that we had died in the land of 
Egypt ! or would God we had died in 
this wilderness !" Numbers xiv. 1, 2. 
And they had their wish ; for except 
Joshua and Caleb, they all — all who 
had been numbered on their departure 
from Egypt — that whole generation — 
died in the wilderness. Their unbe- 
lief prevented their entering the land 
of Canaan ; they fell because of unbe- 
lief. Look at their end — shun their 
example — or your unbelief will shut 
you out of heaven. " There remain- 
eth a rest to the people of God. Let 
us labour therefore to enter into that 
rest, lest any man fall after the same 
example of unbelief." Heb. iv. 1 — 11, 
Of the twelve men whom Moses 
sent to view the land of Canaan, ten, 
when they returned, made the congre- 
gation of Israel to murmur, by bring- 



EXAMPLES. 29 

ing lip a slander upon the land. And 
those men that did bring up the evil 
report upon the land, died by the 
plague before the Lord — a just punish- 
ment for their sins. Num. xiv. 36, 
37. 

Nadab and Abihu burned incense 
with strange fire, and were consumed 
with fire sent from God. Thus will 
God consume all who pretend to serve 
him, except with incense kindled from 
the one altar and that one offering by 
which he perfects for ever his sancti- 
fied. He will be worshipped in spirit 
and in truth. '^ Let us draw near 
with a true heart, in full assurance of 
faith, having our hearts sprinkled from 
an evil conscience, and our bodies 
washed with pure water." Heb. x. 
1—25. 

Korah, Dathan, and Abiram. con- 
3^ 



30 lot's wife. 

spired to divest Moses and Aaron of 
the authority conferred on them by 
God, on which account they and their 
families were swallowed up alive by 
the earth, together with their substance. 
And the two hundred and fifty men 
who were associated with them, who 
were princes of the assembly, famous 
in the congregation, men of renown, 
and who burned incense, were con- 
sumed by a fire which came out from 
the Lord. Look at their end ; shun 
their example. Be humble before God 
and obedient to him. Num. xvi. 2 
—35. 

'' No man liveth to himself, and no 
man dieth to himself." Rom. xiv. 7. 
We live and die for God and for each 
other. Though in general it is well to 
speak nothing but good of the dead, 
yet their example should be held up 



EXAMPLES.- 3^1 

to the living, that, if good, it may 
be followed, or, if bad, it may be 
shunned. Thus we are to remember 
Lot's wife ; and with this in view, let 
us continue our research and our ex- 
hibition, so as to present a faithful 
warning against bad examples. 

Achan, contrary to the express 
charge of Joshua, at the taking of 
Jericho, coveted part of the spoil. 
Having seized a Babylonish garment, a 
wedge of gold, and two hundred she- 
kels of silver, he concealed them in 
his tent. Offended with his crime, 
God marked his indignation thereat, 
in the defeat of three thousand He- 
brews before Ai, and the slaughter of 
thirty and six. Pained with grief, 
Joshua and the Elders of Israel rent 
their clothes and cried to the Lord for 
help. The Lord informed Joshua that 



32 lot's wife. 

one of the people had taken of the 
accursed spoil, and hid it among his 
stuff; and that till the discovery and 
punishment of this sin, they should 
have no assistance from him. By the 
direction of God, the whole assembly 
of Israel sanctified themselves, and 
prepared for the solemn search on the 
morrow. The search was referred to 
the determination of the lot. With 
solemnity it proceeded. Achan was 
taken. Admonished of Joshua, he con- 
fessed his offence. The stolen goods 
were brought and exposed to the view 
of the assembly ; then he, and his 
children, and all his cattle, were pub- 
licly stoned to death ; and the dead 
bodies, with his household furniture, 
were burnt to ashes in the valley of 
Gilgal, and a great heap of stones cast 
on them. Achan, how dreadful 



EXAMPLES. 33 

thy end ! Let not professors of re- 
ligion be Achans in the camp of the 
Lord ; nor let sinners covet what is 
forbidden. ^^ Abhor that which is evil; 
cleave to that which is good. Avoid 
even the appearance of evil." Rom. 
xii. 9. 1 Thess. v. 21—23. 

We read that as Elisha went from 
Jericho toward Bethel, as he was go- 
ing up by the way, there came forth 
little children out of the city, (who 
had been trained up in idolatry, and 
taught to despise the prophets of the 
Lord,) and mocked him, and said unto 
him, " Go up, thou bald head ! go up, 
thou bald head !" These '' children," 
were young men, as the same term 
is applied to Isaac when he was 
twenty-eight years old, and to Joseph 
when he was thirty. 2 Kings ii. 23 
— 25. They had heard that Elijah 



34 lot's wife. 

was gone up to heaven, and they in- 
sultingly bade Elisha follow him, that 
they might be rid of him also. They 
reviled him also for the baldness of 
his head, instead of reverencing him 
for his age. Then he turned back, and 
looked on them, and cursed them in 
the name of the Lord. The Spirit of 
God dictated the solemn curse, as is 
evident from its being immediately 
followed by so terrible a judgment. 
^^ And there came forth two she-bears 
out of the wood, and tare forty and 
two children of them." Here, children, 
you see the end of those that mocked 
the prophet of the Lord. Beware, 
then, how you despise the servants of 
the Lord ; and beware especially how 
you despise or reject his Son. If you 
continue in sin, and will not love God, 
and reverence his Son, and honour his 



EXAMPLES. 35 

servants, God will punish you for ever. 
Remember these wicked children — 
these scoffing young men ! You should 
love and serve God and do his will, 
not only because disobedience exposes 
you to his anger, but because it is your 
duty — it is right — and God has claims 
upon you. He says to each one, '' Give 
me thy heart ;" and it is sinful not to 
give it. " Remember now thy Creator 
in the days of thy youth." Eccl. 
xii. 1. 

Evil examples have power to seduce 
the old as well as the young, because 
they address themselves to the natural 
evil of our hearts. Such examples sur- 
round us on every side. We are ex- 
posed to them from our infancy up ; 
and that we may escape their fatal in- 
fluence, we should ponder well the end 
of the wicked, and view it in the light 



86 lot's wife. 

of God's word. The way of trans- 
gressors is hard ; even here in this 
world they have their share of wo ; but 
we cannot always see their present mis- 
ery. They may even seem to be happj'-. 
Their lives may seem to be full of en- 
joyment; and this renders their ex- 
ample the more dangerous. Hence we 
should look at their end. We should 
consider how they die ; and especially 
should we take into consideration their 
eternal state. This will weaken the 
force of their example for evil. It 
will impress upon us the salutary les- 
son drawn from the unhappy history 
of Lot's wife, that the example of the 
wicked is not to be imitated, but to be 
shunned. Reader, let this lesson come 
home to your heart ! Let the young 
heed it; let the old heed it. And that 
you may shun bad examples success- 



EXAMPLES. 3? 

fully, flee to the Lord Jesus Christ; 
seek from him renewing, sanctifying, 
and restraining grace ; remember the 
presence and the claims of God, em- 
brace his Son, and live to his glory. 

" On what a slippery steep 

The thoughtless wretches go ! 
And oh ! that dreadful fiery deep 
That waits their fall below ! 

Lord, at thy feet I bow, 
My thoughts no more repine, 

I call my God my portion now, 
And all my powers are thine.'' 
4 



38 lot's wife. 



CHAPTER III. 

ILLUSTRATIONS. 

Go not in the way of evil men. — Prov. iv. 14. 

When Sodom was destroyed, Lot 
was delivered. His wife looked back, 
and became a pillar of salt. Our Lord 
foretelling the destruction of Jerusa- 
lem, says it shall be as in the days of 
Noah and Lot, sudden and dreadful, 
and directs his disciples to flee ; and 
to enforce his admonitions, he adds, 
" Remember Lot's wife." Luke xvii. 
20—37. 

As we have seen, the lesson taught 
by these words is, that bad examples 
are to be shunned ; or, the end of the 



ILLUSTRATIONS. 39 

wicked teaches us to shun their ex- 
ample. In illustration of this, some 
scripture examples have been pre- 
sented ; and my present purpose is to 
adduce still further examples and il- 
lustrations, and then make a practical 
application. 

It has been suggested that Lot's 
wife perhaps was a native of Sodom. 
But as Lot's interests were separate 
from Abraham's while they were liv- 
ing near together, it seems most likely 
that he was married before removing 
to the vicinity of Sodom, He chose 
the valley of Sodom for his residence 
because its pastures were rich. At 
first he pitched his tent toward Sodom ; 
and then afterward he dwelt in Sodom 
— he left his tents and dwelt in the 
city. 

Ryle remarks that here are two mis- 



40 lot's wife. 

takes on the part of Lot :^ — First, he 
made a wrong choice — he chose a res- 
idence solely for the sake of its temp- 
oral advantages ; and, second, he set- 
tled in a wicked place and among sin- 
ners, when there was no need of it. 
And the disastrous effects are seen 
in himself and in his family. We are 
jaot told why he lived in Sodom. ^' Per- 
haps his wife liked the town better than 
the country, for the sake of society. 
It is plain she had no grace herself. 
Perhaps she persuaded Lot it was need- 
ful for the education of his daughters. 
Perhaps the daughters urged living in 
the town for the sake of gay company ; 
they were evidently light-minded young 
women. Perhaps Lot liked it himself, 



See ^* Remember Lot," published by the Presby- 
teriau Board. 



ILLUSTRATIONS. 41 

in order to make more of his flocks 
and herds. Men never want reasons 
to confirm their wills. But one thing 
is very clear, Lot dwelt in the midst 
of Sodom without good cause. . . . 
When a child of God does these two 
things which Lot did, you never need 
be surprised if you hear unfavourable 
accounts about his soul. . . . Make a 
wrong choice in life, and settle your- 
self down unnecessarily in the midst 
of worldly people, and I know no 
surer way to damage your own spirit- 
uality, and to go backward about your 
eternal concerns." So it was with Lot. 
He did no good in Sodom. Not one 
listened to his preaching. He did no 
good in his family. Not one of his 
house was pious. And he died under 
a cloud. Nothing is said of his latter 
end. And the doom of his wife we 

4^ 



42 lot's wife. 

know. Remember Lot's wife. Shun 
bad examples. 

We have looked at the example of 
Adam and Eve, of Cain, the old world, 
Sodom and Gomorrah, and the cities of 
the plain, Er and Onan, Pharaoh and 
the Egyptians, the Israelites in the 
wilderness, the spies, Nadab and Abihu, 
Korah, Dathan, and Abiram, Achan, 
and the children, or young men rath- 
er, who reviled the prophet, and were 
devoured by wild bears. All these 
teach what an evil thing it is to sin 
against God, and admonish us to shun 
bad examples. And now, in further 
illustration and admonition, take the 
following examples : 

Ahab, king of Israel, reigned in 
Samaria. In iniquity and impiet}^ he 
far exceeded all the kings of Israel. 
It is said by the prophet that " he sold 



ILLUSTRATIONS. 43 

himself to work wickedness in the 
sight of the Lord." He was very 
much grieved because Naboth refused 
to sell him his vineyard. His wife en- 
quired the cause of his grief, and be- 
ing informed, bade him be comforted. 
She had Naboth slain; and Ahab went 
to take possession of the vineyard. 
The prophet Elijah was sent to him by 
God to deliver this message : '' In the 
place where dogs licked the blood of 
Naboth, shall dogs lick thy blood, even 
thine." Not long after this, Ahab was 
engaged in battle with the Syrians ; 
and a certain man drew a bow at a 
venture, and smote the king of Israel 
between the joints of the harness, and 
he died at even. God directed that 
arrow, though it seemed a chance shot, 
for in God's government there is no 
such thing as chance. The prophecy 



44 lot's wife. 

must needs be fulfilled. The blood 
ran out of the wound into the midst 
of the chariot ; and one washed the 
chariot in the pool of Samaria^ and 
dogs licked up his blood. He shed 
man's blood, and by man was his blood 
shed, and dogs fed themselves on it. 
Remember Ahab. 

Another example. Jezebel, the wife 
of Ahab, was a similar character, per- 
formed similar deeds, and met a simi- 
lar end. She used witchcraft ; and 
had she lived at the present day, she 
would have been a thorough spiritual- 
ist, holding pretended converse with 
the invisible world, or real converse 
with the Evil One. She was so mad 
on idolatry that she maintained, at her 
own expense, four hundred priests of 
the groves sacred to Ashtaroth, while 
her husband maintained four hundred 



ILLUSTRATIONS. 45 

and fifty for Baal. She instigated her 
husband to murder the prophets of 
God wherever they could be found. 
In the most unjust and cruel manner, 
she caused Naboth of Jezreel to be 
murdered, as we have just seen, to 
obtain for Ahab the vineyard which 
lay near the palace of the king of Israel. 
In just judgment for her enormous 
wickedness, according to the predic- 
tion of the prophet Elijah, who said, 
" The dogs shall eat Jezebel by the 
walls of Jezreel/' she was thrown out 
of a window, trodden under foot by 
the horses of Jehu, and then devoured 
by dogs, near the spot where Naboth 
had been stoned to death by her in- 
iquitous command. When Jehu was 
come to Jezreel, Jezebel heard of 
it, and she painted her face, and tired 
Jier head, and looked out at a window. 



46 lot's wife. 

And they threw her down^ and some 
of her blood was sprinkled on the wall, 
and on the horses ; and he trod her 
under foot. Then he said, " Go, see 
now this cursed woman, and bury 
her ; for she is a king:'s daughter." 
But when they went to bury her, they 
found no more of her than the skull, 
and the feet, and the palms of her 
hands. Wherefore they came again 
and told him. Then he said, This is the 
word of the Lord, which he spake by 
his servant Elijah the Tishbite, saying, 
^' In the portion of Jezreel shall dogs 
eat the flesh of Jezebel." Remember 
Jezebel — a fit companion of Lot's wife. 
Here is another. Herod the Great 
was a monster of cruelty and wicked- 
ness. He slew the children of Beth- 
lehem of two years old and under ; he 
caused Aristobulus, his wife's brother^ 



ILLUSTRATIONS. 47 

to be murdered when eighteen years of 
age ; he put to death Hyrcanus at the 
age of eighty years, grandfather to his 
wife Mariamne ; he publicly executed 
Mariamne his amiable wife, and her 
mother Alexandra ; he caused his two 
sons Alexander and Aristobulus to be 
strangled in prison. Just before his 
death he assembled the chief men of 
the nation at Jericho. He shut them 
up in the circus, and made his sister 
promise that she would have them 
slain the moment he died. This he 
thought would cause mourning at his 
death, when he knew all would rejoice 
to be rid of him. The promise of his 
sister was not performed. Herod died 
in great misery of a most loathsome 
disease. Such was his end. View it, 
and shun his example. Remember 
Herod. 



48 lot's wife. 

Herod Agrippa, grandson to Herod 
the Great^ who caused the murder of 
James the son of Zebedee, and pro- 
ceeded to take Peter also, having made 
a speech on a certain occasion, was ap- 
plauded with the cry, It is the voice of 
a god, and not of a man. Receiving 
the impious flattery with pleasure, he 
was smitten by an angel, and was eat- 
en of worms and died. Let flatterers 
and the flattered, the vain and the 
proud, look at his end and shun his 
example. Remember also this Herod. 
Judas betrayed Christ. Smitten with 
remorse, he confessed his sin, threw 
down the money, and went and hanged 
himself; and falling headlong from the 
place where he was suspended, all his 
bowels gushed out. Reader, beware ! 
Sell not your Saviour for this world, 
its riches, its honours, its pleasures, 



ILLUSTRATIONS. 49 

lest you follow Judas '^ to his own 
place." '^ How can you escape if you 
neglect this great salvation ?" Re- 
member Judas. 

Ananias and Sapphira sold their pos- 
sessions and laid part of the price at 
the Apostles' feet, and kept back the 
rest, pretending that they had surrend- 
ered all unto the Lord. Thus they 
lied unto the Holy Ghost; they lied 
not to men, but to God. And they 
were smitten and died with the lie up- 
on their tongues. Take warning, ye 
that keep back part of your hearts 
from God. He requires the whole 
heart, an unreserved surrender. And 
let liars remember Ananias and Sap- 
phira, and shun their example ; for 
" all liars shall have their part in the 
lake which burneth with fire and brim- 
stone." Nothing that maketh a lie 



50 lot's wife. 

shall enter heaven. There was also 
grievous hypocrisy in the conduct of 
these smitten ones ; and their fearful 
end is designed to be a warning to 
hypocrites in all ages. Remember 
Ananias and Sapphira. 

The Jews rejected Christ, saying, 
•^ His blood be on us !" And the Jews 
are scattered among all nations under 
heaven, a by-word and a reproach ; 
and Jerusalem is this day trodden 
down by the Gentiles. Let the reject- 
ers of Christ remember this, and pre- 
pare for the coming vengeance of God 
upon them. '^ The day of vengeance 
is in his heart." The Lord Jesus "shall 
be revealed from heaven with his 
miahtv angrels, in flaming: fire, taking 
vengeance on them that know not God, 
and that obey not the gospel of our Lord 



ILLUSTRATIONS. 51 

Jesus Christ ; who shall be punished 
with everlasting destruction from the 
presence of the Lord, and from the 
glory of his power." flee to Christ, 
and escape the coming wrath ! 



52 lot's wife. 



CHAPTER IV. 
APPLICATION. 
Ponder the path of thy feet, — Prov. iv. 26. 

Remember Lot's wife. This is a 
solemn warning ; and it teaches us 
that the end of the wicked should 
lead us to shun their example. Let 
us continue to illustrate and enforce 
this doctrine, and make a more close 
and personal application of it. 

The end of the swearer should lead 
us to shun his example. God hath 
said, " Take not the name of the Lord 
thy God in vain ; for the Lord will not 
hold him guiltless that taketh his name 
in vain." Ex. xx. Frequently has 
the swearer been cut down with an 



APPLICATION. ' 53 

oath upon his lips. Who is willing 
thus to be called into the presence of 
God ? Oh then shun the swearer's ex- 
ample and company, and learn to fear 
and dread an oath ! It is both wicked 
and vulgar to swear. 

The end of the Sabbath-breaker 
should lead us to shun his example. 
Not few and far between are the in- 
stances of judgments visited upon the 
despisers of God's holy day. Often 
are the Sabbath pleasure parties of 
the young the death scene of some of 
their number, " Remember the Sab- 
bath day to keep it holy," is the com- 
mand of God. Ex. XX. And let those 
who violate it, remember those un- 
happy ones, who, for disobeying God, 
have been made monuments of his 
wrath. 

Here is a paragraph which should 
5* 



54 lot's wife. 

be deeply pondered by all. It speaks 
of Sabbath-breaking and crime. The 
Committee of the British House of 
Commons, on the Observance of the 
Sabbath, state in their report, that, 
" innumerable unhappy individuals, 
who have forfeited their lives to the 
offended laws of their country, have 
confessed that their career in vice 
commenced with Sabbath-breaking and 
neglect of religious ordinances." The 
Committee made inquiries on the sub- 
ject very extensively; and the lan- 
guage of their report is remarkable. 
So many are the instances where a 
career in guilt and crime was com- 
menced in Sabbath-breaking, that they 
call them '^ innumerable ;" and this, 
they say, was " strongly stated in evi- 
dence," by witnesses whom they ex- 
amined. Are those who profane the 



APPLICATION. 55 

Sabbath aware whither their course 
is leading them ? Sabbath-breaking 
leads to ruin. Shun the Sabbath- 
breaker's example. 

The end of the murderer should 
lead us to shun his example. " Thou 
shalt not kill.'' Ex. xx. Cain was 
cursed of God. But the punishment 
of this crime, so far as this world is con- 
cerned, is committed to man. " Whoso 
sheddeth man's blood, b}'' man shall his 
blood be shed." Hence we must look 
for the end of the murderer on the 
scaffold. There you behold his end. 
Look at it ; and — I need not say — 
shun his example. No one thinks of 
imitating it. Then beware how you 
give way to anger ! Never seek re- 
venge. " He that hateth his brother 
is a murderer." Then love one an- 
other. 



56 lot's wife. 

The end of adulterers and fornicators 
should lead us to shun their example. 
Perhaps on earth these meet not the 
treatment they deserve. They should 
be driven from the society of the 
chaste. They should be branded with 
eternal infamy. The licentious man is 
a pest and a curse to societ3\ His ex- 
ample and his influence are dangerous ; 
the}^ are fatal and deadly. His end, 
what is it ? Disease preys upon him ; 
he dies an enemy to God and man ; 
and the leprosy of sin kills his soul 
eternally. "Xeither fornicators nor 
adulterers shall inherit the kingdom 
of God." These sins caused the aw- 
ful doom of Sodom. 

The end of the thief should induce 
us to shun his example. He is watched 
with a suspicious ej^e. He is trusted 
by none. All hate him ; all abhor 



APPLICATION. 57 

him. They wish well to his soul ; but 
they detest his conduct. He dies in 
disgrace ; and in the long living annals 
of infamy, his name is recorded. And 
on his grave-stone it is written, Shun 
my example ! Beware of dishonesty ! 
Regard as sacred what is not your 
own ! " Thou shalt not steal ! Thou 
shalt not covet !" 

The end of the drunkard instructs 
us to shun his example. His end you 
know. He dies as a brute. His body 
dies, but his soul, Oh ! where is that ? 
He dies and is buried, and on his 
grave-stone we read, "No drunkard 
shall inherit the kingdom of God." 
His end says to all who pass by. Walk 
not in my footsteps ! Shun my ex- 
ample ! 

But we need not go so far as the 
end of the drunkard to be taught not 



5S dot's wife. 

to follow his example. His example 
itself is detestable. Xone Tvill follow 
it for its beauty ; none will follow it 
for its pleasure ; none will follow it for 
its honour. Indeed, there is but little 
danger of men's imitating the example 
of the drunkard. It is the example 
of another class that is imitated, 
and whose influence is fraught with 
destruction. The temperate drinker 
makes the practice of drinking respect- 
able — if a practice so degrading can 
be called respectable. The temperate 
drinker keeps the practice in counten- 
ance. He keeps up the drinking usages 
of society. By his example he in- 
duces others to drink and be drunken. 
With that panoply which the temper- 
ate drinker's example furnishes to their 
hands, the drunkards shield themselves 
against every attack on their sinful 



APPLICATION. 59 

and ruinous habit. Go to the drunk- 
ard and tell him his sin, and urge him 
to forsake his cups, and he will imme- 
diately say, My neighbour drinks, and 
I can too — and I will ! Or he will say, 
Go to the members of your church, 
and get their names to your pledge ; 
and then it will be time enough for 
me to think of giving you mine. Thus 
the moderate drinker's example affords 
a shelter to the drunkard ; and thus he 
becomes a file leader in the army of 
inebriates, who walk in his steps and 
sink to perdition ; and God will bring 
him into judgment for the souls he has 
ruined. 

But while leading others to ruin, 
the moderate drinker is himself walk- 
ing the same broad road. Often does 
he fall himself by the hand of the de- 
stroyer. In fact no one becomes a 



60 lot's wife. 

drunkard at once ; it is by little and 
little that the fearful end is reached. 
Every drunkard was once a moderate 
drinker ; and it is moderate, temperate 
drinking that makes drunkards. 

Hence the end of the temperate 
drinker should lead us to shun his ex- 
ample. And what is the end of the 
temperate drinker ? Why, it is to be 
a drunkard ! That is his end, almost 
certainly. You may see his end in 
the drunkard who staggers through 
the streets. I do not say that every 
temperate drinker will become a drunk- 
ard ; but I do say that the tend- 
ency, the legitimate and unavoidable 
tendency, and the frequent result, 
of moderate drinking is to lead to 
drunkenness. And I say further, that 
the legitimate end of the moderate 
drinker is to be a drunkard. To this 



APPLICATION. 61 

end he is hastening. He may, perhaps, 
die before he becomes a drunkard; but 
if he live sufficiently long, and con- 
tinue to drink, though at first he drink 
moderately, he will become a drunkard ; 
not, it may be, in the estimation of 
some men, but in the view of good 
men, and in the sight of God. Let 
me therefore point you to the end of 
the moderate drinker — and you may 
see it in every drunkard you meet — 
let me point you to his end, and warn 
you to shun his example. Beware of 
the first drop ! Taste it not ! Look 
not upon it ! There is danger and death 
in the cup. '' Let him that thinketh he 
standeth, take heed lest he fall !" 

The end of the moralist — the one 
who depends upon his morality — 
teaches us to shun his example. We 
are to be moral — we must obey God 



62 lot's wife. 

and eA^er do right — but we must not 
base our hopes of heaven upon our 
moral lives. The one who does so is 
a moralist ; and you may read his end 
in the history of the young man who 
came to Christ enquiring what good 
thing he should do that he might have 
eternal life. The commandments, he 
said, he had kept from his youth up. 
But when told to sell his possessions, 
and give to the poor and follow Jesus, 
he went away sorrowful ; and lost 
his soul notwithstanding his morality. 
Matt. xix. 16 — 22. Shun his exam- 
ple and flee to Christ for salvation ! 
Depend not on your works. You are 
a sinner; and none but Jesus can save ! 
The end of the worldling teaches 
us to shun his example. For '^ what 
shall it profit a man, if he shall gain 
the whole world, and lose his own 



APPLICATION. 63 

soul ?" Mark viii. 36. The gain would 
be loss ; for the soul lost, all is lost, 
and lost for ever ! '' Seek first the 
kingdom of God !" Come to the Sa- 
viour now ! 

The end of all unbelievers, and of 
the wicked generally, should induce 
us to shun their example. The wick- 
ed are frequently prosperous and 
apparently happy. Hence they are 
sometimes envied even by good men. 
Asaph was envious at the foolish, when 
he saw the prosperity of the wicked. 
" They are not," says he, '' in trouble 
as other men ; neither are they plagued 
like other men. Their eyes stand out 
with fatness; they have more than 
heart could wish. And they say. How 
doth God know? and is there know- 
ledge in the Most High? Behold, 
these are the ungodly who prosper in 



64 lot's wife. 

the world ; they increase in riches." 
And he adds, " Verily I have cleansed 
my heart in vain, and washed my 
hands in innocency." He was in dis- 
tress. The wicked were prosperous; 
but he was afflicted. All the day long 
was he plagued, and chastened every 
morning. And he says, " When I 
thought to know this, it was too pain- 
ful for me, until I went into the sanct- 
uary of God ; then understood I their 
END !" This set the whole matter right. 
The END of the wicked taught him not 
to envy their prosperity, but to shun 
their example. Ps. Ixxiii. 

Even the death-bed of the wicked — 
the end of their mortal existence — 
should teach us this. But this is not 
the whole of their end ; it is but the 
beginning. 



k 



APPLICATION. 65 

• " 'Tis Dot the whole of life to live, 
Nor all of death to die." 

Sin kills beyond the tomb. " After 
death the judgment." Hence the Psal- 
mist continues, " Surely thou didst set 
them in slippery places ; thou cast- 
edst them down into destruction. How 
are they brought into desolation as in 
a moment ! they are utterly consumed 
with terrors. As a dream when one 
awaketh, so, Lord, when thou awak- 
est, thou shalt despise their image !" 
The wicked shall be turned into hell. 
They shall go away into everlasting 
punishment. They shall be tormented 
day and night ; and the smoke of 
their torment ascendeth up for ever 
and ever ! This is the second death — 
the wages of sin. Consider it. Look 
at the end of the wicked, and shun 
their example ! 



66 lot's wife. 

The end of the impenitent and un- 
believing, in particular, should lead us 
to shun their example. Draw near 
the death-bed of the impenitent sinner, 
and you view a scene of horror. Un- 
willing, and yet obliged to die! Ap- 
proaching death, and yet shrinking 
from it with terror ! 

" Oh how the frantic soul 

Eaves round the walls of its clay tenement !" 

How does it weep over past ne- 
glects ! How does it cry for another 
hour in which to prepare to meet its 
God ! How does it warn all around 
to flee to Christ, and when death comes 
in the midst of its warnings, it departs 
in anguish, saying : 

" No time is granted for expostulation — 
Shun my example !'^ 

Reader, follow it up to the bar of 
Ood, and down to the pit of despair ! 



APPLICATION. 67 

View there its misery ; survey its 
doom ; contemplate its end ; and shun 
its example ! 

Yet how many follow the example 
of the impenitent and unbelieving, and 
perish for ever ! They resolve to re- 
pent, but never do it ; they resolve to 
believe, but never do it. Reader, have 
you repented ? Have you believed in 
Jesus Christ ? Will you repent ? Will 
you believe? When? Now? Delay 
not ! Don't put it off ! Now is the 
time ! Do it now ! Boast not thyself 
of to-morrow; for thou knowest not 
what a day may bring forth. 

" While God invites, how blest the day ! 
How sweet the gospel's charmiDg sound ! 
Come, sinners, haste, oh ! haste away, 
While yet a pardoning God he's found." 



68 lot's wife. 



CHAPTER V. 

CONCLUSION. 
Consider your ways. — Hag. i. 7. 

It is time now to come to a conclu- 
sion. We have looked at the history 
of Lot's wife^ and drawn from it this 
lesson — " Bad examples must be shun- 
ned." This lesson has been enforced 
and illustrated by numerous examples; 
and as a practical application of it, it 
has been shown that the end of the 
wicked teaches us to shun their ex- 
ample. Now one remark, and I have 
done. This subject affords a powerful 
incentive to virtue and piety. DweU 
on these examples and illustrations. 
See in them the tendency of vice. 



CONCLUSION. 69 

See its result — it ruins those addicted 
to it. And see in them also the just- 
ice of God — see both his goodness and 
his severit}^ He is just. Beware 
how you offend him and abuse his good- 
ness. " Ponder the path of your feet. 
Avoid the way of transgressors." It 
is hard, and leads to death. Let the 
end of them that walk therein, as ex- 
hibited in the examples here presented, 
and in the providence of God around 
you, teach you to shun their example. 
Walk in the pleasant and peaceful 
paths of wisdom; imitate the just; 
obey God ; repent of sin ; believe in 
Christ ; tread in the steps of the up- 
right, and your end shall be peace. 

Scripture examples are of two kinds : 
the bad, for our warning ; the good, for 
our imitation. To some of the bad I 
have pointed you ; and have drawn 



70 lot's wife. 

the practical lesson, Shun bad exam- 
ples ; not only the vile and degraded, 
but every thing that is not in conform- 
ity with the mind and will of God. 
Let the precept be deeply impressed 
upon your soul : " Abhor that which 
is evil ; cleave to that which is good." 
Rom. xii. 

Shun bad examples; and, at the 
same time, follow good examples. The 
Scriptures abound in these. Search 
them out and read them. There is 
righteous Abel — follow him. There is 
Abraham, the friend of God — follow 
him. There is Enoch — walk with God 
as he did. There is Joseph, and 
Moses, and Joshua, and Caleb, and 
Samuel, and David ; there is Noah, 
and Job, and Elijah, and Daniel ; there 
is Timothy, and Paul, and John ; and 
above all, there is the example of Him 



CONCLUSION. 71 

who did no sin, and in whose mouth 
there was no guile — the example of 
Jesus Christ — follow him. Possess 
his spirit, imitate his example, live to 
his glory, and yours shall be a life of 
usefulness, a death of peace, and a 
heaven of glory ! 

Beware of little sins! Lot's wife 
only looked back, and where is the 
harm of a look ? See it in her end ! 
A little leak will sink a great ship. 
"If thine eye offend thee, pluck it 
out !" " Look not on the wine when 
it is red !" The lustful look is un- 
cleanness ! 

Take another example. See that 
young man — he takes an occasional 
glass — he fears not an occasional oath ; 
he has begun the down-hill course. 
Shun his example ! One glass may 
lead to your ruin ! One oath may be 



72 lot's wife. 

your undoing ! One visit to the thea- 
tre — -one forbidden indulgence — one 
Sabbath misspent — may sink you to 
perdition ! 

See that young woman — gay and 
thoughtless — poring over the impure 
novel — dallying with temptation — run- 
ning the giddy round of pleasure — 
sporting on the brink of ruin — and ne- 
glecting her soul ! Shun her exam- 
ple ! 

See that delaying sinner — putting 
off the one thing needful — resisting 
the calls of God and the influences of 
the Spirit — and shun his example ! 

See that one trifling with holy things 
— making a mock at sin — hardening 
his heart against God — and shun his 
example ! 

See that one trusting in the hope of 
future repentance — dreaming there is 



CONCLUSION. 73 

time enough yet to attend to the con- 
cerns of the soul — and thus cheating 
himself out of heaven — and shun, oh 
shun his example ! 

Let husbands and fathers remember 
Lot's wife ! She may have induced 
Lot to pitch toward Sodom, and to 
dwell in the city, and to linger in escap- 
ing from it. So Eve led Adam into sin. 
Though husbands should love their 
wives, they should not be led by them 
away from God and duty, but order 
their families in the fear of the Lord. 

Let wives and mothers remember 
Lot's wife ! Her husband's influence 
was weakened by her ; he saved none 
around him ; none of his own family 
were saved by him; his sons-in-law 
were not; and his daughters were 
vain and wicked, and seduced their fa- 
ther into sin. A wicked mother may 



74 lot's wipe. 

do much evil. If a pious mother is a 
blessing, a wicked mother is a curse ; 
for as is the mother, so is the daughter. 
Ye mothers, fear God and keep his 
commandments, and train up your chil- 
dren for him. 

Let daughters remember Lot's wife, 
and not like her go to destruction, nor 
be led by a wicked heart and improper 
influence to infamy and ruin ! 

Are you a professing Christian ? 
Take warning from her example. Look 
not back to the world ; be not con- 
formed to it. Shun its sins, its pleas- 
ures, and follies, and beware of a world- 
ly spirit. This ruined Lot's wife, this 
ruined Lot's family; and this caused 
Lot the loss of all his possessions. His 
wealth was consumed in Sodom, where 
he went to increase it and to enjoy it. 
His own soul was damaged, and al- 



CONCLUSION. 75 

most his entire family slain. Christ- 
ian, beware of the world ! Look not 
back ! 

Have you just set out in the Christ- 
ian race ? Press on ! Live near to 
God. Be firm and faithful. Look not 
back. Go forward ; grow, run, strive, 
fight manfully. 

Are you enquiring what you must 
do to be saved ? Let nothing keep 
you from Christ. Flee to him now, 
and cling to him for ever. Delay not. 
Escape for your life; stay not in all 
the plain ; flee to the mountain — Jesus 
Christ; look not behind thee — flee — 
flee. 

Have you any desire for salvation ? 
Quench not the Spirit. Call earnestly 
upon God for mercy. Pray ; repent ; 
believe ! 

Would you be saved in the day of 



76 lot's wife. 

wrath — saved from sin and hell ? Then 
turn unto God ; cease from sin ; believe 
in Christ. 

Alas ! there are man}?- in the church 
who are lingerers like Lot. There are 
many in the church who love the world 
as did Lot's wife. There are multi- 
tudes who are as unwilling to leave their 
sins and forsake all for Christ, as Lot's 
wife was to leave Sodom. And oh ! 
how many have set out to escape the 
wrath of God — begun to flee from the 
wrath to come — begun to walk in the 
way to heaven ; and yet have looked 
back — returned to their sinful ways, 
and perished ! They have been almost 
Christians, but not quite ! have gone al- 
most to heaven, but not quite ! And 
thus the shores of the eternal world are 
covered with the wrecks of immortal 
hopes ! And all along the pathway of 



CONCLUSION. 77 

life are the bleached bones of those 
who have died in the wilderness, and 
never reached the heavenly Canaan ! 
Reader, set out at once in the divine 
life, and look not back ! 

Christian, would you escape the 
evils of a worldly spirit, be rich in 
faith and good works, be useful in 
your day and generation, enjoy God's 
presence here, and dwell with him for 
ever ? Then take warning and remem- 
ber Lot's wife ! 

Sinner, would you be saved from the 
end of the wicked, have your sins for- 
given, have the love of God in your 
heart, have peace of conscience and 
joy in the Holy Ghost, have a title to 
heaven and a fitness for it, and enjoy 
a foretaste of its blessedness even be- 
fore you die ? Oh then shun bad ex- 
amples ! Cease to do evil ; learn to 



78 lot's wife* 

do well. Behold the Lamb of God 
and follow that which is good. Be- 
lieve in the Lord Jesus Christ, and 
live for God's glory — for holiness and 
usefulness and heaven ! 

" Let us hear the conclusion of the 
whole matter: Fear God, and keep 
his commandments; for this is the 
whole of man. For God shall bring 
every work into judgment, with every 
secret thing, whether it be good, or 
whether it be evil." Eccl. xii. 13, 14. 



2H J;. 



^*86a. |[ 



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